Melissa Lucio
Melissa Elizabeth Lucio | |
---|---|
Born | Mellisa Elizabeth Lucio June 18, 1969 |
Citizenship | Texas resident |
Criminal status | On death row |
Spouse | Robert Antonio Alvarez |
Conviction(s) | Capital murder |
Criminal penalty | Death (stay of execution issued on April 25, 2022) |
Melissa Elizabeth Lucio (born June 18, 1969) is the first woman of
Lucio's case was the subject of a 2020 documentary,
Early life
Melissa Lucio was born in
Death of Mariah Alvarez
Mariah Alvarez was born to Melissa Lucio and Robert Alvarez in September 2004. Mariah was Lucio's twelfth child.
On February 17, 2007, paramedics were called to the Lucio residence because two-year-old Mariah was unresponsive and not breathing. According to the
Interrogations
Following Mariah's death, Lucio was arrested and questioned for seven hours by Texas Ranger Victor Escalon without a lawyer present, and without receiving food or water.[8] She admitted to having spanked Mariah, but denied ever having abused her, which she repeated more than 100 times.[9] She was then told by Escalon: "Right now, it looks like you're a cold-blooded killer. Now, are you a cold-blooded killer or were you a frustrated mother who just took it out on [Mariah]?" He continued by telling her, "We already know what happened". After several hours of interrogation, Lucio stated, "I guess I did it. I'm responsible."[10]
One of Lucio's sons was also questioned by law enforcement shortly after Mariah's death. In a video, a female officer asks the boy: "Did you see your sister fall down the stairs or did somebody tell you that she fell?" The boy then responded: "No, I saw her fall."[10]
Legal proceedings
During the trial, Lucio's recorded statements from her interrogation were described as a confession by Cameron County District Attorney Armando Villalobos, who was seeking re-election at the time.
Lucio’s
Post-conviction
Lucio was pregnant with twins at the time of Mariah's death, and authorities compelled her to place them for
A 2011 appeal against the conviction was denied by the
Forensic pathologist Dr. Thomas Young, the former chief medical examiner in
In August 2021, an amicus brief was filed on Lucio's behalf by a group consisting of legal scholars, experts on violence against women, and representatives from sixteen organizations that combat violence against women. The brief states that Lucio's subdued behavior and acquiescence during interrogation were the result of prior trauma as a survivor of abuse. They also argued that a judge's order to exclude expert testimony on the effects of trauma had "deprived Melissa of the only means she had of explaining that, notwithstanding her demeanor and self-incriminating statements, she was innocent of her daughter's murder."[20]
In January 2022, Cameron County officials signed an execution warrant for Lucio. She was scheduled for execution on April 27, 2022.
In April 2022, a juror on the trial, Johnny Galvan Jr., wrote in the
On April 25, 2022, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals issued a stay of execution and ordered the 138th Judicial District Court of Cameron County to consider new evidence of Lucio's innocence in the death of her daughter.[25]
During the subsequent hearings, the District Attorney's office admitted that exculpatory evidence has been withheld at trial, and both sides requested that the court overturn Lucio's conviction.[26] In April 2024, District Judge Arturo Nelson, the same judge who had presided over Lucio's original trial, recommended that she be given a new trial.[27] The case was then sent back to the Court of Criminal Appeals for a final decision.
In popular culture
A 2020 documentary by
On March 6, 2022, in the main segment of an episode of the HBO show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver called "Wrongful Convictions", her case was the main one to be mentioned as a reason for the reform of the American justice system and specifically, the abolition of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA).[29] On April 17, 2022, in the main segment of another episode, called "Police Interrogations", Lucio's case was mentioned again as having every hallmark of a false confession.[30]
See also
- List of death row inmates in the United States
- List of people scheduled to be executed in the United States
- List of women on death row in the United States
References
- ^ a b Segura, Liliana; Smith, Jordan (2022-03-05). "Rush to Judgement". The Intercept. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
- ^ "Death Row Information". Texas Department of Criminal Justice. 2022-04-27.
- ^ Clark, James (April 22, 2022). "Woman with Lubbock ties to be executed, many take up the cause to stop it". EverythingLubbock.com.
- ^ a b Wamsley, Laurel (April 22, 2022). "Melissa Lucio is scheduled to be executed for a crime that may not have occurred". NPR.
- ^ Segura, Liliana; Smith, Jordan (March 5, 2022). "Is Texas Sending Melissa Lucio to Die for a Crime That Never Happened?". The Intercept. Retrieved April 23, 2022.
- ^ Iati, Marisa (2022-02-10). "Her execution date looming, a mother maintains innocence in 2-year-old daughter's death". The Washington Post.
- ^ Martinez, Laura B. (January 14, 2022). "Execution date set for Harlingen mom for murdering daughter". MyRGV.com.
- ^ "'I saw her fall': Video is death row mum's last hope". NZ Herald. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
- ^ a b O'Connell, Oliver (April 5, 2022). "Melissa Lucio execution - latest: Kim Kardashian appeals to Texas governor as juror says death sentence wrong". Independent. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
- ^ a b Hamalienko, Simon; Hanlon, Tim (2022-02-19). "Death row mum-of-14 hopes new videos could clear her of toddler's fatal fall". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
- Ms. Magazine. Retrieved March 25, 2022.
Lucio, a survivor of decades of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) by family members and two husbands, offered her statements to end hours of harsh interrogation by investigators, which is a common response for SGBV survivors.
- Western District of Texas (February 11, 2014). "Former Cameron County District Attorney Armando Villalobos Sentenced To Federal Prison In Connection With South Texas Bribery Scheme". Retrieved March 25, 2022.)
In Brownsville today, former Cameron County District Attorney Armando R. Villalobos was sentenced to 13 years in federal prison for his role in a South Texas bribery and extortion scheme announced United States Attorney Robert Pitman.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - ^ a b "Harlingen woman faces April execution for daughter's 2007 murder". KVEO-TV. 2022-01-15. Retrieved 2022-03-08.
- ^ a b "Death Row Information [Melissa Lucio]". Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved January 15, 2022.
- ^ "Death Row Information". Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved 2022-04-22.
- ^ "Melissa Elizabeth Lucio v. The State of Texas (concurring)". Justia Law.
- ^ "Federal Appeals Court Overturns Mother's Conviction in Texas Child Murder Case That May Have Been an Accidental Death". Death Penalty Information Center.
- ^ "Divided Federal Appeals Court Reinstates Death Sentence for Texas Mother of Child Who May Have Died in Accidental Fall". Death Penalty Information Center. February 17, 2021. Retrieved February 17, 2023.
- ^ "Court Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law: Manuel Velez" (PDF). pp. 13–20. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
- ^ Olsen, Lise (January 25, 2022). "A Texas mother could be executed in April. Was her child's death really a murder?". The Texas Observer.
- ^ Puente, Nathaniel (January 14, 2022). "Harlingen woman faces April execution for daughter's 2007 murder". KVEO-TV. Retrieved January 15, 2022.
- ^ Pilkington, Ed (April 21, 2022). "Texas mother is set for execution as evidence suggests she did not kill her child". The Guardian. Retrieved April 21, 2022.
- ^ Galvan Jr., Johnny (April 3, 2022). "I voted to sentence Melissa Lucio to death. I was wrong". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
- ^ Moctezuma, Estevan (April 22, 2022). "I am sending a letter to Governor @GregAbbot_Tx". Retrieved 22 April 2022.
- ^ Pilkington, Ed (April 25, 2022). "Texas death row prisoner Melissa Lucio granted stay of execution". The Guardian. Retrieved April 25, 2022.
- ^ Segura, Liliana; Smith, Jordan (22 April 2024). "A Prosecutor Asked Texas To Kill Melissa Lucio. Now He Says She Should Be Freed". The Intercept.
- ^ Melhado, William (15 April 2024). "State district judge recommends overturning Melissa Lucio's death sentence". The Texas Tribune.
- ^ Keslassy, Elsa (April 15, 2021). "Hulu Acquires U.S. Rights to Tribeca Documentary The State of Texas vs. Melissa". Variety. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
- ^ "Wrongful Convictions". Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (Cable TV). March 7, 2022. Event occurs at 14 min. HBO. Retrieved March 7, 2022 – via YouTube.
- ^ Police Interrogations: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO). Retrieved 2022-04-19.